All Guilty Anyway

by

Russell W. Johnson

Riveting courtroom drama and legal thriller.

All Guilty Anyway by Russell W. Johnson is a riveting legal thriller featuring a first-year attorney assigned to the defense of an immigrant mother in what appears to be a slam-dunk case of child abuse. But everything quickly goes off script, starting with no plea deal and ending with a courtroom showdown against a renowned assistant district attorney nicknamed "The Hatchet Lady." 

Fledgling defense attorney Ivy Collins had turned her back on joining her father's prestigious law firm and gone to work for Lester "The Truth" Williams, a famed defense attorney who may be beyond his glory days. Sonia Cabrerra, the pregnant mother of eight-year-old Hugo, is in jail awaiting adjudication on charges of child abuse, based on the child's testimony that the scarring on his torso came from her deliberately burning him with a hot skillet grate. Speaking neither English nor Spanish well, she had given the investigating detective compromising answers that indicated she had hurt the boy in the past. However, subsequent questioning in her native language soon revealed a different story than what the police and district attorney were peddling. Still, obtaining corroborative evidence from those who could help prove Sonia's innocence hit roadblocks at every turn. Ivy has her work cut out for her in her first-ever court trial, defending a client who faces overwhelming evidence against her, whom she believes is innocent. 

Ivy Collins is an engaging young attorney, ready to do all she can to provide a righteous defense. She's stubborn and headstrong when it comes to being told she can't do something: the initial reason she turned her eyes toward working as a criminal defense attorney rather than following in her demanding and larger-than-life father's footsteps. She's softhearted, too, and willing to help her friends, even considering some shady maneuvers to keep a coworker from being deported. She's a character you want to root for from start to finish. 

The plot hinges on a horrible accusation by a seemingly charming little boy, so it's a long shot that readers will be persuaded to sympathize with the accused. However, the author pulls it off, and Sonia Cabrerra becomes the underdog, trapped by circumstances and facing impossible odds. The courtroom scenes are riveting, with all the involved attorneys portrayed as top-notch professionals. For once, none were made to look buffoonish or incompetent, just formidable adversaries. The resolution is satisfying, with careful attention to the future of Sonia and Hugo's unbearably broken mother-child relationship. 

I recommend ALL GUILTY ANYWAY to readers of legal thrillers and courtroom dramas. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours.